LOS ANGELES >> Although he had no physical limitations stemming from preseason knee surgery, UCLA freshman Ike Anigbogu was severely limited by foul trouble against UC Riverside on Wednesday.

Playing in just his third game since undergoing surgery to repair a meniscus tear on Oct. 25, Anigbogu had three fouls in three minutes in the first half. He was 0 for 1 from the field with one block.

The 6-foot-10 freshman had played only 18 minutes in his first two games. When he is healthy, he is expected to provide a strong defensive presence for the Bruins inside. In limited time during his first two games, he collected four blocks against Nebraska and Texas A&M to help UCLA to the Wooden Legacy championship Sunday.

Sharing the Ball

Lonzo Ball, the nation’s leader in assists, continued his torrid pace Wednesday, dishing out five assists in the first seven minutes of the game against UCR. Three of his assists went to 7-foot center Thomas Welsh, who was 5 for 5 from the field in the first half for 10 points.

Ball, who took just one shot in the first half on a wide-open dunk, twice has had 11 assists in a game this year, which is only one shy of the UCLA freshman single-game record set by Pooh Richardson in a double-overtime game against Washington State in 1986. The point guard from Chino Hills entered Wednesday’s game averaging 9.1 assists per game.

The Bruins had assists on seven of their first eight made field goals while also starting 5 for 5 from the field. By halftime, UCLA had 14 assists on 18 field goals and a 15-point lead against the overmatched Highlanders. Every player who saw the court in the first half, except for Anigbogu, had at least one assist.

UCLA leads the country in assists and assists per game.

Big test ahead

The Bruins will try for their first road win over a No. 1 team in 15 years on at 9:30 a.m. PT Saturday against Kentucky (CBS) in their first trip to Rupp Arena. UCLA’s last such victory was against Stanford on Feb. 3, 2001.

Saturday’s matchup will be the third in as many years between the Bruins and Wildcats, all of which have featured a No. 1-ranked Kentucky team. UCLA shocked the Wildcats in Pauley Pavilion last year after Kentucky trounced the Bruins in Chicago 83-44 the prior year.

Thuc Nhi Nguyen has covered UCLA for the Southern California News Group since 2016. A proud Seattle native, she majored in journalism and mathematics at the University of Washington. She likes graphs, animated GIFs and superheroes.